Success Step II - You Must Plan!

So, you’ve made up your mind.  You have decided that no matter what you are going to be successful.  You are dead serious about it and no one can sway you from your decision.  

Congratulations.  You have now taken the very first step towards creating success in your life.   You’ll find that with this new attitude there is suddenly a new outlook on tomorrow.

Good, now let’s take the second step.

“Success Step II – You Must Plan!”

Decision alone isn’t going to get you there.  You can decide all you want but if you don’t have an idea on how to go about it to get successful, your decision will eventually fall on loose ground.

How do you plan?   It’s simple really.  Let’s say you have decided to become a professional singer, no matter what.  As such, you’re plan might be something like this:

1. You’re going to have your voice checked to make sure it’s good enough.


2. You’re going to keep your eyes and ears open for any and all singing auditions so that you can go to as many as possible.


3. You’re going to keep on taking vocal lessons to improve your voice even more.


4. You’re going to find a job to support you during your quest, but one that’s flexible enough to let you pursue your dream.


5. You’re going to take positive criticism constructively and ban negativity from your mind.


6. You’re going to take breathing lessons to improve your lung capacity so that you can really hold those long and high notes.


7. You’re going to keep on doing all these things and more no matter how long it takes.

I am not a professional singer and the plan above serves as an example.  You’ll notice that my plan does not contain any dates or time frames.  There is a reason for that.  I know, a lot of experts tell you that you must put a date on your plan in order for you to achieve it.

I agree, just not with my plan.  My plan is without date and time because it’s constant.  In other words, the plan you make to become successful is a plan that you execute every single minute of every single day until you’ve reached your goal.  The plan stops when you’ve reached your goal.  

You also noticed that the plan does not make any reference to money.  I found that making a plan that involves money doesn’t work simply because it discourages.   Imagine the plan would have read:  “I am going to take voice lessons.  For that I will need $1000!”  Slam, you just got hit in the face.  You don’t have $1,000.  And now your plan doesn’t work.  Do not worry about the money part.  I learned that if you truly want something, somehow, inexplicable, you’ll find a way to get where you want to get.

Don’t think so?  A friend of mine wanted to join a certain Karate gym.  Only problem was he didn’t have the money for the membership, the clothes and the gear.  His dad didn’t want to loan it to him because he made just enough to feed his family.

Desponded my friend went to that gym every day.  Every day he would stand at the window and gaze inside, looking at the teacher and the students honing their skills.  

After months of looking through the gym’s window every single day, the teacher took note of him.  He went outside and asked my friend to come in.  My friend told the teacher he’d better not.  He really wanted to join but he didn’t have the money and going inside not being able to participate, would break his heart.

The teacher scratched his chin.  Then he smiled and told my friend: “Come here every day, clean and dust the gym and I will train you for free!”  My friend is now a Karate teacher holding ranks in the highest degrees.

Colonel Sanders was told by everyone who ever tried it that he had the best chicken they ever ate.  So after he retired, he decided he was going to become rich and famous by selling his chicken recipe.

His plan was to wear a white suite and go restaurant to restaurant offering his recipe for a small percentage of the profit.  His plan also included that he would use his own car for transport as well as resting and sleeping quarters.   Additionally, the food he would eat would be the chickens that the restaurants cooked to try out his recipe.

That was his plan; short and simple.  Anyone hearing this would have and probably did say: “man, you are nuts!”  

He threw away negative criticism and didn’t allow it to deter him from his dream.  Restaurant after restaurant he stopped, offering his recipe for a percentage of the profits.  Restaurant after restaurant rejected him and showed him the door.

Try to imagine what his suite must have looked like after a while.  But he prevailed.  He had decided and he had a plan to get rich and famous from a chicken recipe.  After thousands of doors, yes thousands, closed in his face, one sunny afternoon, he entered a small but cozy restaurant.

The owner was a lady.  She was sweet and kind.  After giving his usual speech she decided to try out his recipe.  She liked the taste and texture of the chicken.  She believed that his recipe would most certainly improve her business and she saw no problem giving him a percentage of the profits.

The rest as they say is history:  Kentucky Fried Chicken was born.

So, go ahead, make your plan.  Do it now.  When your plan is ready, put it into action and let nothing stop you.  Like the Colonel, you’ll succeed.  I know because that’s what I did for 15 years.  Like the Colonel I stuck to it.  And like the Colonel I am now successful.  Guess what, you can too!  

Best Wishes;

Lode


Coming soon:  Success Step III.  Stay Tuned.